Justification:
Listed as Least Concern as this is a widespread and abundant species with total population numbers estimated at more than seven million. Its ability to withstand hunting pressure and habitat degradation enable it to adapt to increasing human colonization of its forest habitats, although even this abundant, highly resilient species is suffering some decline in its distribution and numbers as human populations continue to grow and expand. However, this is unlikely to threaten the Blue Duiker’s overall survival in the foreseeable future.

Widely distributed in central, eastern and southern Africa, from the Cross River in Nigeria to south-east Sudan and southwards to central Angola, and remnant forests and thickets in Zambia, Malawi, eastern Zimbabwe, and parts of central Mozambique. In South Africa, this species is mainly confined to the evergreen forest and thicket along the coast from northern KwaZulu-Natal to the eastern Western Cape province; there are no confirmed records from Swaziland and none from southern Mozambique, suggesting a break in distribution between their South African range and eastern Zimbabwe and central Mozambique. Also present on the islands of Pemba, Zanzibar and Mafia (East 1999; Wilson 2001; Hart and Kingdon in press).

East (1999) produced a total population estimate of more than 7,000,000 animals, likely a conservative figure. Protected areas comprise only a small part of its total range, but its core populations are generally stable apart from areas where subsistence and commercial meat-hunting pressures are exceptionally high (East 1999).

The Blue Duiker thrives in a wide range of forested and wooded habitats, including primary and secondary forests, gallery forests, dry forest patches, coastal scrub farmland and regenerating forest from sea level up to 3,000 m asl (Hart and Kingdon in press). They can persist in small patches of modified or degraded forest and thicket, even on the edge of urban centres.

The species is subject to extensive hunting for bushmeat throughout its range states, and is arguably the most important wild ungulate economically and ecologically in Africa (Wilson 2001). However, it withstands hunting pressure better than most of the larger duikers. Furthermore, unlike many of the other forest duikers, Blue Duikers tolerate and even thrive in a range of human-modified habitats, even in the vicinity of settlement, and often persist well in small habitat patches (Hart and Kingdon in press). Nonetheless, some local populations may be subject to declines or extirpation in the face of one or both of these threats (e.g., see Lawes et al. 2000).

The Blue Duiker occurs in large, generally stable numbers in many protected areas within the core of its range, e.g., Dja and Lobeke (Cameroon), Dzanga-Sangha and Dzanga-Ndoki (Central African Republic), Monte Aien (Equatorial Guinea), Lope and Gamba (Gabon), Odzala, Nouabale-Ndoki, Lake Tele-Likouala and Conkouati (Congo-Brazzaville) and the Okapi reserve, Maiko, Kahuzi-Biega and Salonga (Congo-Kinshasa), not to mention several protected areas in South Africa.

The Blue Duiker should continue to survive in large numbers and provide an important source of protein to human populations in the Central African forest zone, as long as human population densities remain low to moderate over extensive parts of its range.